PRESCOT PARISH
CHURCH. Originally the church was dedicated to
All Saints, but was later re-dedicated to St.
Mary the Virgin, probably when the present church
was built in 1610. It is believed that the site
was a religious sanctuary even in pre-Christian
times and that a Christian church of timber and
clay was built there by Celtic monks. However,
there is very little evidence remaining of the
previous buildings. The base of the south wall
may be ancient, and the clergy vestry is probably
of the fifteenth century. The floor of this
vestry is actually two feet below the level of
the chancel, but a wooden floor has been
constructed four feet above this. The tower and
spire, 150 ft. high, were added in 1729, and
there is a peal of eight bells, cast by Mears of
London in 1845, and quarter-turned in 1934.

The fine open roof
of the nave, dated 1610, is of black oak, and has
eleven trusses, which are alternately tie and
hammer beams. The pendants and brackets are
finely carved, and the rafters are of effective
design, enhanced by the plastering between. The
octagonal pillars are interesting because they
represent genuine Gothic architecture in its last
phase, before it was superseded by the
Renaissance style. In 1818 the aisles were
enlarged and the north and south walls, windows
and doors were made.

Another
interesting feature is the font, which is very
old and appears to have been the original one. It
was later discarded in favour of a handsome
marble font, presented by Daniel Willis, of
Halsnead, in 1755. Eventually, after being used
in Roby Church, the old font was restored to its
present place, and the marble font now stands by
the organ chamber.

The
chancel is rich in black oak for the panelling,
altar rails, and choir stalls, which are richly
carved and dated 1636. Eleven of the stalls have
misericord seats, a very unusual thing in parish
churches. On the north side of the chancel stands
an effigy, life-size, of John Ogle, a member of a
prominent local family, who died in 1612. He was
the donor of the very fine chair, dated 1610,
which stands close by. By the effigy is an
ancient poor-box. The graceful screen was
dedicated in 1921 in memory of the men of Prescot
who fell in the 1914-18 war, and the beautiful
reredos, in dark oak, was presented by Mrs. E. G.
Evans in 1891. The choir vestry was built in
1900.

PRESCOT
CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH. The old Non-conformist
Church at Prescot was erected in 1756, and
several families and individuals, at that time
attending church at St. Helens, but whose
residence was in or near Prescot, for the greater
convenience of themselves and their families left
the ministry of Mr. Mercer for that of Mr.
Holland, the then minister of Prescot. The work
at Prescot thus dates from February 29th, 1756,
the number of members then being seventy-six. The
foundation stone of the Ebenezer Chapel was laid
on July 30th, 1811, by Rev. Thomas Spencer of
Liverpool. The land had not been legally conveyed
to the Trustees, and it was not until 1860 that
this matter was settled and a Deed of
Enfranchisement was procured from the Fellows of
King's College, Cambridge, who were Lords of the
Manor of Prescot. In 1868 movements were made
towards the building of the present church in
Aspinall Street. At a church meeting on October
6th, 1874, Mr. Prescott reported that the land
had been purchased from Mr. Aspinall for the site
of the new church. On the 16th August. 1877, the
foundation stone of the present church was laid
by Major W. W. Pilkington. J.P., of St. Helens.
In connection with the church at the present time
there is a very active Amateur Dramatic Society,
a Ladies' Guild, and Parents Association.

THE
METHODIST CHURCH . The Rev. John Wesley passed
through the town on his way to Warrington in
1757. The only reference in his Journal is under
the date 10th April. 1768 (Sunday) when he
attended the Parish Church and afterwards
preached in the open air. About the year 1770 one
of Wesley's itinerants took his stand on the
fish-stones which were around the prison in the
Market Place, and there preached to the crowd
which gathered. Later, the first group met in the
Tan Yard, afterwards known as Pottery Place, in
Kernble Street, and subsequently removed to the
"Long Room" in Eccleston Street. A more
commodious building was later acquired in
Houghton Street (now the Church of England Day
School). This old chapel becoming inadequate,
land was acquired in Eccleston Street, and. in
1S37, a Gothic-style building of hewn stone,
capable of accommodating 500 persons, was
erected, and is still used as a Sunday School. At
the end of the 19th century, the Trustees
acquired the old Unitarian Chapel in Atherton
Street. This served as a Mission Hall until 1910
when the present church, accommodating about 750
persons, was erected.

ROMAN
CATHOLIC CHURCH. Dedicated to Our Lady Immaculate
and St. Joseph, the Roman Catholic Church in
Vicarage Place was erected in 1856, and is a
stone building in the Gothic style, consisting of
a chancel, nave, transepts and a tower containing
one bell. Also St. Luke's Roman Catholic Church.
Shaw Lane. Prescot.

OTHER
CHURCHES in the town include St. Paul's Church
(C.E.), Bryer Estate, Zion Independent Methodist
Church, the Welsh Congregational Church in
Warrington Road, the Salvation Army Hall in
Warrington Road, and the Bethel Church. Evans
Street.